Injury may be frustrating, but Lewis not letting it dampen his spirits
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FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Twins third baseman Royce Lewis was his usual cheerful self in the clubhouse on Tuesday morning, less than 48 hours after suffering a left hamstring injury that will keep him out for a matter of weeks.
Lewis' spirits are good, he said. He¡¯s frustrated, of course. And he appreciates the concern. But really, he has a much more immediate concern.
"I think people forget, people ask a lot about the mental state and emotional state of obviously being frustrated or whatever, but I¡¯m thinking, ¡®Anyone would be frustrated,¡¯¡± Lewis said. ¡°I think the part people forget is, ¡®Dude I¡¯m hurt. It actually hurts.¡¯ The physical part of, I can¡¯t put my clothes on and going to bed is not fun. I didn¡¯t get good sleep because it hurts. That¡¯s what I¡¯m dealing with at the moment.¡±
Lewis received an MRI exam on Monday, which the club said revealed a moderate hamstring strain. He¡¯s already receiving a considerable amount of treatment, including time in an oxygen chamber on Tuesday morning. The Twins' medical staff is waiting for the initial swelling to subside before putting more of a timetable on Lewis¡¯ return. All that¡¯s known for sure is he¡¯ll miss Opening Day, though it seems likely that it¡¯s still a matter of weeks rather than days after that.
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Quipping that he¡¯s learned a great deal about his own anatomy due to injuries, Lewis explained that the injury is low in the hamstring. It¡¯s near the back of the knee or top of the calf, in the area where the tendon attaches the thigh muscles to bone.
He¡¯s still figuring out a great deal right now, from how to move around to where he¡¯ll be when the club breaks camp in a week. Lewis does not know whether he will be in attendance for Opening Day in St. Louis on March 27.
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¡°I have no idea yet,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s a good question. That¡¯s a question that I¡¯m trying to find out today. I¡¯ve got to figure out what¡¯s going on. But I would assume probably not, just because ¡ [it] probably makes more sense, [not] getting an extra room for somebody that¡¯s not going to play. All the little things.
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¡°But I don¡¯t know all those things. All I was told yesterday was that 'You¡¯re not going to make Opening Day.' Obviously because even if it was, if it is the lightest, the best-case scenario, it¡¯s still going to be a couple weeks and they¡¯re not going to rush it back. And I think also too with it being colder, that doesn¡¯t necessarily help.¡±